we take the blast, this is collateral damage
by Madam Fiction
Summary: Midoriya Izuku dies when he's 8 years old; a teenager by the name of Nakano Kō finds him, and in his hands lies the responsibility of taking care of the fallout while trying to escape to save their lives.
1. i'm frightened by what i see

**_Reposting this story from AO3, hope you enjoy._**

* * *

Midoriya Izuku dies at the tender age of 8.

It's like any other normal day when the bomb drops with no warning. In a matter of seconds, half of the block is destroyed.

The last thing he remembers is his mom telling him that she loved him; Izuku's backpack on one hand and a warm smile on her face.

When the ' _I love you too_ ' escapes from his lips, a shock wave pushes the room, and then everything is hot and the roof comes down on them.

 **Then everything goes dark.**

When he wakes up, piles of concrete are strewed around him, ashes dance in the dirty air, and his heart pounds loudly in his ears.

" _Mom_?"

He notices that he's on the street. His clothes partly burned, _tattered_ , and majorly stained in some parts with red. His apartment building is now rubbles and dust. There's no sound of panic, not a single person screaming, there are no police cars and ambulances, there are no sirens, _there's not even a hero on sight trying to help_.

 **The block is dead silent and Izuku's ears won't stop ringing.**

" _Mom_?" he asks again, despair latching onto his voice.

His body feels light, his mind is racing, and he can see things clearly.

His feet carry him towards what was left of the building, and as he walks, he notices all the bodies lying on the ground. Blood stains and some body parts are scattered here and there, the smell of scorched wood and… something else hits his nose; he tries his best not to gag and drop what he ate just an hour ago.

When he manages to get to the mountain of concrete, his heart cracks.

Between two huge hunks of rubble, the body of his mother is squashed bloody.

She's facing downwards, blood dripping from her right hand, her tuft of green hair still arranged in the bun she had this morning. The remains of a fountain of blood coat the lower part of where her _corpse_ now lies. Rays of sun filter from the particles of dancing concrete dust; her green hair now looks a shade lighter.

The shriek that escapes from Izuku's throat slows down the world. It reverberates and carries across the thin air—and what's left of the neighborhood—his pain and misery.

Tears, _as always_ , come down with no mercy. Everything around him is now clouded and he feels cold, empty, miserable, _useless_ , and so, _so alone_.

His body hurts and there's something that burns so hot in his chest. A weight in his shoulders lifts, yet his body still feels like it weights a ton. The fact that he's alive and his mom is dead leaves him feeling bleak.

And then _—out of nowhere—_ two arms wrap around him, and he's pulled into a hug.

" _It's okay, it's okay, please don't cry, it's okay,_ " says a young voice in rushed quiet whispers.

Izuku wants to tell the person that _it's not okay._

His home is destroyed, the block totally ruined, scree and debris are scattered everywhere, brown remains of smoke still linger in the air, his neighbors are lifeless and probably missing some limbs, and his mom is now a corpse that would never smile again, greet him when he came back from school, hug him like he was her whole world, worry for him and love him unconditionally, she would never tell him again that she loves him so much, and… and he's _alive_.

 _Why is he alive?_

He was supposed to be dead, everybody here is dead,

 _d e a d_

 **dead.**

The stranger that's desperately trying to calm him tenses and Izuku manages to peek a glance at them. It's a guy; from the hood that covers his head he glimpses strands of brownish hair, really big eyebrows, and his eyes (a hue of red) stare sharply at something across the street.

" _We need to go_ ," he says flatly.

Before Izuku can protest, ask _why_ , the guy abruptly hauls his body to the ground and shields him, the sound of gunshots echo in the air, and the smell of blood enters his nostrils.

The boy grunts as his body spasms and becomes _very heavy_ for a few seconds.

The sound of breaking wood resounds sharply against his ears, Izuku is then lifted up by a pair of strong arms as everything blurs. The sound of sirens starts to emerge, shouts of " _get them_ " and " _don't let them escape_ " quickly spring along with the ambulances and police cars; Izuku is afraid.

He doesn't get a last glimpse of what was left of his home; he can't look back and have a final sight at his mother's lifeless corpse.

And for that, Izuku is slightly glad.


	2. but somehow i know

Nakano Kō has lived through many hardships in his fifteen years of life. Having to grow up in an ambient full of neglect from his parents was due to make him independent and look after himself from the very beginning. In the short time he spent at school, he was told that he would never do great things, he was mocked for being an idiot and scolded for being hot-headed; he also had to endure his classmates' many taunts for being a quirkless freak. He took all the hits and gladly gave them back.

He may have never been the sharpest tool of the shed, but he was _not_ stupid.

 _ **Or so he thought, until the day his life ended.**_

The first time he dies could be considered kind of dumb. Changing the light bulb of the living room shouldn't have gotten out of hand; but since he was short of stature, a minuscule move got him slipping from the stool piled with magazines that helped him reach the ceiling.

 _Nobody_ hears his scream of pain when his back cracks; _no one_ hears him cry, desperately calling for someone to help him. His parents are nowhere in sight, and the small apartment complex they live in is unnervingly silent. He dies on the floor, paralyzed for a week, _dehydrated_.

His heart stops, and he goes down like a candle that ran out of wax.

 _He never expects to come back._

The noise of cracking wood and the prickling sensation in his back is what he wakes to; after being able to feel his legs, hear his heartbeat, and breathe desperately some air into his lungs; tears come down nonstop.

 **Never in his life had he felt so hopeless and alone.**

Something within his being shatters, and then he sees the world with something akin to new eyes. It took his own life to understand the true meaning of solitude; the hopes he had of his family being together and remembering his existence were ripped and burned like paper. He might have discovered in the most unfortunate way that he wasn't quirkless, but that fact alone could not reverse his sad epiphany and the cold emptiness that now settled into his beating heart.

He leaves his home, taking with him what little he owns in a duffel bag. He ionsnever looks back, and leaves to luck's hands whatever it will become of his life.

The first time he died, he was nine years old. And with a broken heart, shattered dreams and a will of steel, he decides to go against the world, be someone worth remembering and try to do a change for others, and for him.

* * *

 **He never dreamt of being a hero.**

He stopped believing in them when nobody came to his aid. Heroes are not real; to Kō, _heroes are a lie_. What was the purpose of having an amazing quirk— _commit to a self-deceiving lie, and then captivate millions for nothing but attention_ —when you couldn't use it for the greater good? What was more important? Fame, or respect? Being held up on a pedestal for selfish actions, or being looked up as someone you could depend on, who people could trust, _hope_ , and believe?

The people that proclaim themselves heroes to the public, and the world, are nothing but liars, and Kō knows this because he has witnessed many injustices. Heroes flash themselves and let people abide their actions as heroics when in reality, the concept of heroism has been lost and reduced to nothing but _reckless actions_.

Kō has seen many things in the last two years since he ran away from home.

He's been in the dark alleyways witnessing— _and managing to prevent or stop_ —acts of vandalism, beat downs, muggings, harrasings. He's been able to help people when heroes are not present. Heroes never come to the shadiest and dirty parts of the few cities he's lived in.

He's been in many public attacks and has witnessed a lot of fights in the streets. He has helped pedestrians and onlookers who end up hurt after the fights. He has seen all the damage a single fight causes, and all the people that are left scared, injured, lost and angry. Heroes only take action, and never go back to help with the casualties and the people that have to deal with the collateral damage.

 **Heroes don't care about the people they swore to protect.**

The second time he dies is when he gets in the way of a robber with a gun and a lady with her baby; trying to do a greater good that no hero could have ever cared to do. The fucker dashes when Kō hits the ground; it takes him a minute to black out, and a half one to get back and sprint after him.

When he catches up, he manages to get ahead of him, turn back and clock the idiot square on the face; after the robber hits the ground, Kō grabs the diaper bag and yells to call the nearest police officer's attention.

When the officer comes to cuff the robber, his eyes won't glance anywhere but to Kō's chest. He ignores this and goes back with the lady to give back her bag. The look of utter terror that marrows the woman's face makes Kō's blood run cold.

" _Ajin!_ " she screams.

Her baby starts to cry, and she begins to back away from him.

The steps behind Kō gave him enough time to consider them as a warning, but he isn't fast enough when a shot rings in the alley.

He dies a third time, rewarded for his 'heroic actions' _with a shot in the head._

The officer didn't even start to cuff him when he comes back, and he runs.

He notices now, the huge blood stain that paints his chest red, the dark specks that leave his body, and the way he crosses half the city in his frantic dash, looking for safety.

That night he cries his little-scared heart away. The look of fear that the lady graced him with left something unpleasant in his mind; it also sparked curiosity and dread over the word that left her screaming lips when realization clouded into her eyes.

 **A** **J** **I** **N**

* * *

 **「 亜人 」**

 _From prefix_ [亜] _meaning_ " _sub-/demi-_ " _and_ [人] " _human_ ".

 **「 Immortality 」**

 _The defining trait of all Ajin is their_ **immortality**.

 _They are unable to die_ **under any circumstances.**

 _Such as being completely crushed, stabbed, shot, drowned, by hemorrhage, or even due to malnutrition._

 **「 Paralyzing Scream 」**

 _Causes nervous system seizure, can paralyze everyone in their immediate vicinity._

 **Range length is still unknown.**

 _A quirk with the same effect in a Non-Ajin has yet to be manifested._

 **HYPOTHESIS: 「Unknown Substance」**

 _It has been theorized (along the years of their old recorded existence) to be _**the main cause** _of the Ajin's powers._

 _Resurrection is said to be attributed by the amount of the hypothesized matter an Ajin possesses; yet, it remains to be proven if an Ajin can run out of this hypothetical substance and actually die without coming back._

 _An Ajin may not know of their status until they die. It is theorized that **once they die, the substance awakens the Ajin's ability to come back to life.**_

 **THERE IS NO MORE DATA AVAILABLE ON THE SUBJECT**

* * *

L H

 **"DEMI-HUMANS: EVOLUTION'S LOST SUBJECT"**

by Mikoshiba Rentarō

 ** _[...]_**

 _There are no known methods ( **yet** ) to discern Ajin from humans, apart from them dying. M.R Gustaff (20XX), has theorized that Ajin probably lack the extra joint in their pinky toe; this would render them as Quirkless in the eyes of our society. Yet, it has been hypothesized that "they possess a unique unknown matter in their body that triggers the mechanism that lets them revive and manages to replace any body tissue or nutrient that the Ajin lost when they died" (K. Okurami, 20XX); traces of this hypothesized substance have yet to be found in any other human with a quirk._

 _Ajin's existence is said to be present way before Quirk's manifested in the human race. Questionable recorded material before the Quirk Era (as we know it) has been found in different parts of the world. The research stopped once Quirks came to exist and was picked up again when civil war broke in Africa 20 years ago and the first Ajin of our era, the "_ Soldier of God _", was discovered._

 _Quirks were believed to be the next stage of evolution in the human race; yet, what little we have got on Ajin might refute the statement; for scientists, who study the theories behind Ajin's abilities, believe them to be the forgotten stage of human evolution._

* * *

Nakano Kō is eleven years old, in the starts of hitting a grown sput, when he dies his second and third time. It isn't until a week after his heroic deed passes that he decides to go to the library to try to get a meaning behind the word that the lady he saved said with utter horror and fear when he came back to life.

He types _Ajin_ on the web browser; the first things that appear are old videos, shady websites and two educational pages that have a friendly name.

He reads many short definitions and a three-page essay by a Mikoshiba fellow that he barely understands on one of the educational sites.

When he clicks the videos, his breath catches in his throat.

The first one has a really old date, going back to 19XX.

In the recording, a man is hit by a truck, and his body cracks under the vehicle; as screams and noise resound in the background, the man slowly crawls from under the truck and dizzily walks away from the vehicle.

Black specks that look like dancing ashes come out from his skin and reconstruct his flesh. The look on the man's face is one of horror and confusion, and after fifteen seconds of silence, people start to scream again.

 _"Demon!"_

The video ends.

The second one has the title of: **_"The Soldier of God, first captured Ajin, 20XX"._**

Kō is transported into a raging battlefield; gunshots and desperate screams paint the scene.

Amongst the roaring embers, a black figure makes its way toward the camera, a man, with a rifle on his hands and a steadiness to his walk.

Someone shoots him multiple times, and he goes down, it takes only a matter of seconds for the black specks to fly from his body and make him stand once more.

 _"Why won't he die?!" "What kind of quirk is that?"_

Near the end of the video, a helicopter hovers over the man, a wall of ice emerges from the ground and multiple gunshots flash from the other side of it. The video ends when Special Forces come down to retreat the body.

The last video is a really suspicious one entitled **_"Hacked Gov. File: Ajin Experimentation, 20XX"._**

The date is a recent one, and by the views of it, it has gone viral.

There is no sound. But the image makes Kō's stomach churn; there's a man wrapped in bandages from head to toe with the number 001 written on his forehead; he's tied against a pillar, and his body is spasming as smoke rises from the floor. He dies, and the particles start to emerge very quickly from his body.

Kō gets the glimpse of something starting to materialize from the black specks, the half of a body comes to existence, and then it drops like sand.

The Ajin dies again and the video ends.

He feels his heart pounding against his rib cage as he repeats the part when the black body starts to appear. He checks the comments, and feels baffled when some of them say:

 **DarkSun332:** I don't get it, what am I supposed to be seeing?

 **KikStrak43:** is this a joke?

 **Nakanase03:** is this some kind of prank or something?

 **lid009:** spasming mummy having a blast, wwwwww

They can't see the black thing appearing from thin air, the black dots that come out from the body of the man.

 _Kō's heart can't seem to calm down._

"Hey kid are you okay?" says someone behind him.

He looks back, and the librarian regards him with a worried look, then her eyes narrow a little in suspicion.

"Wait, I've seen you before," she says as her hand rests on her chin, realization sparks on her face and Kō's heart drops, " _Your parents are looking for you._ "

Kō gets out of the library as fast as he can, the woman shouts "Wait!"

He runs as far away as his legs can take him.

* * *

 **Nakano Kō reported missing for two years.**

 **Recent events state he's been found and confirmed as an Ajin.**

 **If spotted or found, please report to number XXX-XX-XX**

 _ **DESCRIPTION**_

 _ **Hair Color:**_ Auburn

 _ **Eye Color:**_ Brown

 _ **Height:** _156cm (approx.)

 _ **Gender:** _Male

 _ **Status:** _Alive

 _ **Age:**_ 11

 _ **Species:**_ Ajin

 _ **Quirk:**_ Quirkless

* * *

Kō is fifteen years old when his life takes an unexpected turn.

It's been six years since he ran away from home and four since the incident that outed him as an Ajin to the police and made him go on the run.

So far, he has succeeded in avoiding being discovered and tried his best to maintain a low profile by not getting involved in any kind of violent encounter; most of the time he fails and lets his impulse win against the best of his judgment (due to the fact that it feels _wrong_ not to help and let other people get hurt).

Every two months he has to cut his hair, he goes to different thrift shops every three to get new clothes he can fit into his still growing body.

He has lived the last four years doing many jobs to get money to spend on food and places where he can stay the night. Otherwise, he eats in soup kitchens and stays at hostels when he doesn't have money. If the job pays well, he sometimes fancies himself with a hearty meal of a cheap restaurant, buys one or two pieces of clothing from a mall, or buys whatever his heart desires in Konbinis and 100 Yen Shops.

In four years, he has lived and moved a total of seven times in different prefectures: Shizuoka, Hyōgo, Kyōto, Ishikawa, Niigata, Gunma, and Saitama.

 _In those years he dies a total of four times._

The fourth time he died was in a huge fight between a hero and a villain when he was thirteen; the fifth time, he drowns in the beach, and to prevent that from happening again, he takes swimming classes in a public pool.

The sixth time he's fourteen when he goes skating and hits his head hard against the ice. The seventh time he gets hit by a drunk driver.

A month after his fifteen birthday, he stays in Tōkyō for five weeks and then moves to Musutafu after hearing of a moving company that requires some lifting hands, the pay is said to be good.

It's like any other Thursday on a quiet neighborhood when a bomb drops. Kō goes flying with the force of the blast, and when hits his head with a brick wall his vision goes black.

When he stirs awake, dust and dirt float in the air in piles of dense dust. A whole building collapsed a block ahead; _everything is dead silent_ until a small figure rises from the floor, loads of dark specks emerge from the tiny figure.

Kō's heart stops as he looks at the _kid_ walk towards a huge pile of debris.

Never in his life has he seen an amount that _big_ of dark specks, nor has he ever seen another Ajin, _until now_.

The dense cloud of dark that swarms around the boy suddenly materializes into something _big and horrifying_ as the kid lets out an inhuman high pitched scream.

Kō freezes, his muscles tense and his ears ring loudly. His heart pounds heavily on his chest and he feels as if the world that surrounds him has abruptly stopped in time. It feels like centuries have passed when his body responds to him.

He feels heavy and tired.

His ears tune again, and the first thing that he hears is the little boy crying.

He doesn't think, he lets his body act on its own; in a blink of an eye he's hugging the crying kid and trying his best to calm him down.

"It's okay, it's okay, please don't cry, it's okay," he tries to soothe, but that only causes the kid to release more tears.

Kō's eyes dart forward and land on a crushed corpse between two hunks of rubble, he feels how his heart breaks at the sight of green hair and dripping blood under the crushed body.

That moment doesn't last when he picks up a noise that makes him panic. With one hand he covers his head with the hoodie of his jacket and his eyes move frantically looking everywhere, he tenses when he looks back and spots a man that's looking at them with dead eyes holding a phone in his left hand.

With a dry voice, he says to the kid, " _We need to go._ "

He hears to his right the sound of a cocking gun; he reacts by instinct and shields the boy as someone fires the weapon. He feels something pierce his back and burn the insides of his chest, he succumbs to a temporary darkness.

The moment he wakes, black specks swim across his vision. He grabs the kid and carries him in his two arms; he's not thinking of anything other than run, _run_ , _**run**_.

He forgets the reason of why he was there in the first place; he leaves behind the sound of sirens and people shouting after them, he passes a few witnesses with their phones held out, probably recording them; he leaves behind a destroyed block with debris and corpses and a promising job opportunity.

He dies an eighth and ninth time in Musutafu when he's fifteen.

What he gains is a little boy that, from that moment onwards, would change his life.

 **Forever**


	3. that there's much more to come

**[A/N]** My most sincere apologies to everyone who has had this story in alert since the day that I started it, these past two years have been really rough on me due to university; school has had a big toll on me and sucked all inspiration as I immersed myself into school work and personal stuff that also presented itself along the way.

I had half of the draft of this chapter done for quite a while but I didn't know how to proceed with the other one that I was missing, and my lack of time to attend the matter didn't help at all, I got frustrated and left it like that for a damn long time. I tended to it from time to time and worked on it until I got out some parts that I was satisfied with, and until today, there are some small things that I'm not content with, but I honest to god don't know how to fix.

 _Is this series as a whole finished?_  
 **No,** I still have 3 one-shots of this verse planned in my master list for it. I will end it at some point, but right now its not that time. I'm not currently interested in both fandoms to gain that passionate fire that I began with, but it will come back, and I will definitely put it my all.

This year I began to write again, but for other two fandoms. I have the bad habit of submerging into a a fandom/show/game for a small period of time and then just stopping until I regain back the interest.

I'm sorry if this doesn't make it for you, but I really couldn't let this remain unfinished, I gave it my all and did my best to at least try.

* * *

 **Izuku's life changes for good when he's eight years old.**

All it took was a bomb, his mother's corpse and a stranger snatching him away before everything went to the depths of the hell that he already was in.

The world blurs around him, and his body stops processing every other sensation that isn't numbness while his ears forget any sound that isn't the constant ringing that prolongs itself on them.

When he comes to be again, he's in an unknown place, probably somewhere in Tōkyō.

He does not panic because there is no need to do it anymore.

Inside an old motel room, _he breaks again_ , tears silently come down as his body goes cold all over and something in his chest becomes heavy. The insides of his nose ache and his eyes sting with every little tear that falls to his lap.

But neither the silence of the room, nor the distant sound of the traffic outside can console him as a vivid image comes to life in his head.

A lifeless body lying crushed amid two broken piles of concrete, a fountain of crimson that cascades down like a river on the rubble, a hand reaching out for something (or someone), and a mossy tuft of green that brightened in contrast with the sunbeams, that hid the face that Izuku remembers since he has memory and has loved dearly.

His heart aches and wants, to go back, back, back and do something to revive her; to take her body out from the rubble and make the fountain of blood reel back to where it belongs; to grasp her reaching hand, never let go and give everything he has to make her breathe again.

 _' **I Love You!'**_

Her final words ring in his head and Izuku tries to disappear, to rewind time and save her from her demise.

He hugs his legs and tries to remember how his mother's embrace felt like.

But he can't, because he's alone and _alive_ , and she's _dead_.

Izuku doesn't hear the door open, nor the footsteps that approach him. But he feels how something drops on his left side, and how someone gently makes him stand. Izuku's knees wobble and shivers run across his body. His eyes focus a little, and the color orange is all that registers on his head before two arms wrap around him and hold him tight.

Izuku feels warmness spread everywhere, and he gives back the embrace, as strongly as he can, and continues to cry his aching heart out to the memory of his mother, to his past life, and to what—from that moment onwards—he would remember to as his last day as a human, and his first one as an Ajin.

* * *

Kō comes back to the sound of sobs and hiccups in a room swarmed in black.

For only a moment, he reminisces the image of a little boy lying broken and dying on the floor of an empty house, crying what probably were his last human tears.

Loneliness and pain spread in his chest and squeeze his heart as he lets himself remember what it feels like to be sad, alone, and unable to die.

He steels himself and starts to cross the dark room, letting the sound of a crying child guide him.

He drops the bag next to where he believes the kid is and lets his hand reach to him.

He gently grabs his arm and makes him stand. He feels how he struggles, and how his body trembles as his sobs get more frantic.

Kō hugs him, as tightly as he can. The kid responds and does the same, and Kō lets himself shed tears of his own on top of the kid's green mossy hair as he makes a promise to himself.

 **Never again.**

He does not notice the darkness disperse from the room like ashes dancing in the air as if they were smoke, the room becomes clear, and the moonlight filters through the crevice between the curtains of the only window in the room.

 _ **We are never again going to be alone**_

* * *

The next day they're out of the hotel before dawn breaks. Kō dresses Izuku in cheap clothes he got the day before and puts a plain dark wig and a facemask on the kid to avoid suspicion.

On their way to the station, all the newspaper stands they passed by had on display the newest scandal of the day.

 **「** _Terrorist Bombing Annihilates Musutafu's Residential Section No. 9, A Whole Complex Confirmed Dead. _**」**

As the sun begins to peak in the horizon, Kō and Izuku descend through the early morning passerby-traffic in their way to the underground bullet train station. The morning news flashes with the early report of the day in every T.V that they stumble upon; the echoing voice of the reporter booming loudly as they go forward.

 _ **"It has been only 21 hours since the disappearance of Japan's third confirmed Ajin, Midoriya Izuku, after the annihilation of the ninth residential section of Musutafu's fifth district."**_

 _ **"The government and the investigation division of Tokyo's police department teamed up with pro-heroes Beast Jeanist and Snipe in the search of the child and his mysterious abductor who, many speculate, is also an Ajin."**_

As Ko purchases the tickets, Izuku hears of a conflict that the government has with an underground villain affiliation; the news reporter mentions the other targeted localizations across Japan and goes into further detail in regards of his home's fall and the damage that the neighboring buildings suffered.

The names of his neighbors, and his mother's, echo across the platform as they wait for their train. At the ending of the victims list, his name is exclusively highlighted, setting emphasis on his late discovered status as an Ajin, and when Izuku turns back to face the news screens, his face is displayed with full color, and the information pops up next to his picture.

 **MIDORIYA IZUKU, WANTED AJIN.**

 **In case of spotting or finding him, please report to number XXX-XX-XX**

 **DESCRIPTION**  
 **Hair Color:** Moss Green  
 **Eye Color:** Green  
 **Height:** 120cm  
 **Gender:** Male  
 **Status:** Alive  
 **Age:** 8  
 **Species:** Ajin  
 **Quirk:** Quirkless

Izuku's breath hitches and Kō's grip on his hand tightens.

The train stops, its doors open, and they board in with the first passengers of the day as if the world wasn't falling down upon their shoulders.

Izuku's heart goes into a frenzy, and tears begin to bud in the corner of his eyes.

They both sit next to each other, and Kō wraps his arm around the younger boy and looks down at him with steel in his eyes.

"Nothing will happen to you, okay?" he says with a steady voice.

And Izuku stares back with wondrous eyes.

 _"I promise, nothing will happen to you as long as you're by my side."_

* * *

For four years, Kō kept his promise. For four years, Kō works arduously to give Izuku a decent a normal life despite their status as fugitives in the eyes of society.

For four years, everything goes calmly in their lives; but it all goes to hell the night that Kō comes back a little late from work.

His arms ache and his back is killing him, but he ignores the painful sensations when he remembers that the envelope with the pay is resting safely in his pocket and he has finally arrived home.

He opens the door, and his ' _I'm home_ ' gets interrupted by Izuku's frantic, "Aniki! Hurry, hurry, hurry!"

He takes off his shoes at light speed and fastly gets into the small living room in time to see Izuku's silhouette being shadowed by the bright light coming out from the TV.

On the screen, the image of a man on a wheelchair and another one with a cap is displayed in the small device. The press is frantic, bombarding the older man with questions. Their cameras flash, contrasting vividly with the man's pale skin; the one in the wheelchair looks very sick.

 _"Today…"_ begins the old one with the cap, _"I-I've come today because there's something I want the public to know."_

Kō turns on the lights and grabs the nearest stool to make Izuku sit a little far from the TV, he remains standing to his right.

 _"Let me start by saying two things, my name is Satō, and…_ **I'm an Ajin.** "

Kō's blood runs cold, and he hears Izuku's sharp intake of breath.

The reporters go wild.

 _ **'Ajin?** **!'**_  
 _ **'What are you trying to say?!'**_  
 _ **'Is that true?!'**_  
 _ **'You're an Ajin?!'**_  
 _ **'Aren't you afraid of being captured by the government?**_  
 _ **'What are the two things you want to say?'**_

Silence, and the man shifts, _"The first is… there's a lot of false information out there, don't let it fool you."_

One of his hands releases a handle of the wheelchair and rests on the right shoulder of the person occupying it.

 _"Ten years ago, there was a big news story that caused quite a commotion; as you all know, it was the news of Tanaka Koji here, the media got carried away, and a TV show even offered a reward."_

Neither Kō nor Izuku knew about this.

 _"But I am pretty sure, that you also remember the one that caused a massive uproar," his face now bears a somber expression, "I'm talking about the one of four years ago, where the image of a scared and mourning child got broadcasted across the nation."_

 _The reporters don't say anything_ , Izuku's heart pounds in his ears, and he feels like crying.

 _"You remember now? I'm talking about young Midoriya Izuku; the rewards over him were higher than Tanaka's; if it weren't for the other Ajin that saved him, he would have suffered a horrible fate at the hands of the government."_

Kō places a hand on Izuku's shoulder, and squeezes, "It's alright, Izukkun, you're safe."

"Tell me, would you experiment on a child? Would you treat them as if they were nothing just because they can't die? Aren't children the nation's most precious treasure?"

 **Nobody answers.**

 _"This time, the same thing happened with Nagai Kei. This is being treated like some kind of public event, and the media is feeding this frenzy all over again; none of you have any idea of what was waiting for them."_

 _ **'** **Yes, we do!'**_  
 _ **'** **Is there a problem we should know?'** **  
 **'** It's true, some people do feel a little sorry for them, after all, people who've discovered that they're Ajins have to be taken into government custody, and then must live under their care.'**_

Satō scoffs and looks at the camera offended, _"I know that's what the government has officially announced, but let me tell you,_ **it's a lie**. _The government has been conducting inhumane experiments on Ajins, and that's the second thing I wanted to say."_

 _ **'** **What are you saying?!'**_  
 _ **'** **You're messing with us!'**_  
 _ **'** **In 20XX a video was leaked of the American government doing experiments on Ajins, many people feel that similar things are happening right here as well!'**_  
 _ **'** **Tell us Satō-san, did you actually fell for that hoax and illegally entered the lab to get Tanaka out?''**_  
 _ **'** **That's obviously a crime!'**_

 _"Except I have proof."_

 _ **'** **Alright, where is it?'**_

 _"Well, I've already uploaded it online."_

 _ **'** **No way!'**_  
 _ **'** **Hurry, get my laptop!** **  
 **'** Go, go, go, confirm th—!'**_

"Aniki, the computer!" says Izuku hurriedly; Kō instantly goes for their mini laptop and turns it on as fast as he can.

 _"Those videos are… top-secret data from the home computer of a certain Ajin researcher."_

 _ **'This can't be real...'** **  
'It looks pretty authentic to me...'**_

 _"This cannot be forgiven! Just because we are different from you people does not mean we can be dehumanized and be treated like lab rats! Don't you see that?!"_ He says as he bangs his hands into the wheelchair's handles, _"I'm asking all of you here to please protest with me!"_

When the device is finally running, Kō opens the browser and types _Ajin_

 _"In two days, I will begin a protest directly in front of the Ministry of Finance in Chiyoda, so please come to fight with me!"_

The results are immediately arranged over the screen, videos labeled as _'classified'_ are the first things that appear; one of them, Kō is familiarized with.

 _"After all, there is the chance that anyone you know, family, friends, acquaintances, children… could turn out to be an Ajin like us."_

"Aniki?" ask Izuku, frightened as his green eyes widen at the images that the computer displays.

 _"You must do it for… for the happiness of us all," says Sato as tears start to fall down from his eyes, "to prevent the treatment that_ Tanaka _was given, to stop ruining normal lives like_ Nagai's, _and to not scare Ajins anymore and force them to hide at such a young age for what they truly are, like young_ Midoriya."

In the background, the Laboratory explodes.

In the midst of the commotion, the reporters change their cameras to take a shot from the burning building.

When the camera focuses back, only a wheelchair is left behind.

* * *

Two days later, Kō goes to the Ministry in Chiyoda; Izuku, as stubborn as always, sends his humongous black mummy with Kō, serving as his presence.

The trip is half an hour from their apartment, and they arrive at a good time, fifteen minutes before the stated meeting time. Izuku, through his mummy, spots at least five heroes positioned in different parts of the block; there are three cameramen and also three reporters near the entrance of the Ministry building.

Everyone gathered is waiting for something.

 **They can't see the whole block infested with different types of black mummies.**

Kō counts a total of sixteen.

"Thanks for coming," says one sitting at the top of a tree, "Now, I'll tell you the real gathering place, tomorrow at 2 p.m, we want you all to meet in—"

* * *

"This time I go alone," says Kō when he arrives at home.

"But Ani—"

"No, Izukkun, I would bet you anything that all the mummies you saw are from older people, I can't risk something happening to you if you go."

"At least let me send my mummy with you!" protests Izuku.

"No, you stay here and wait for me."

Izuku looks at the floor, worry written on his face, his shoulders tense and his hands clench.

"Hey, I'll call you if something comes up," says the older boy, resting a comforting hand on Izuku's head, "even if nothing happens, wait for my call when I'm on my way back."

Izuku wants to say something, tell Kō that it's a bad idea. But his Aniki is looking at him with reassuring eyes and a warm smile, his hand ruffling his messy hair makes some tension escape from his shoulders.

 _Trust me_ , is what Kō tries to say.

"Okay," he says quietly.

"Don't worry, it will be all right!" replies Kō with a bright smile.

* * *

When Kō arrives at the abandoned warehouse the next day, there are only six people gathered at the entrance of the building. Amongst the plain environment, and the distant sound of the cicadas, everyone looks wary. The warm heat the weather bestows upon them has nothing against the heavy atmosphere that has ominously settled over them; the looks everyone is giving each other are judging and cautious ones, waiting for someone to do something; the unsettling silence is putting Kō on edge.

"Ah, I see you have arrived", says a black mummy from a fire escape at the top of the building, "I'm Satō, please, come in everyone!"

One by one they go inside, Kō eyes the building suspiciously; his left hand rests on his pocket where his phone is.

 _ **He has a really bad feeling about this.**_

* * *

Izuku is a wreck of anxiety and emotions the moment his Aniki leaves; uneasiness settles in his stomach, and his head won't stop imagining worst case scenarios.

 _Is he going to be okay?_

 _Was the meeting going to be fast?_

 **Were the people at the gathering trustworthy?**

 _ **Would things be alright?**_

 **What if something happened to Kō?**

Was this Satō character too dangerous?

 _If they got caught, did that mean they were going to leave soon?_

For two hours straight Izuku busies himself with menial tasks to keep the bad thoughts away. He washes the dishes, swipes the floor, turns the T.V on and stares into the screen as a program goes by. At one point he takes out one of his notebooks and begins to write down a small hypothesis of his Aniki's lack of black mummy.

When he's two pages in, the door opens.

"Aniki?" he asks loudly, "You got back early!"

He closes the notebook and stands to greet his brother at the door.

"You didn't call me, dummy! You said to wait for your call when you got back I thought you were gonna arrive la—!"

Izuku goes still when he notices it's not Kō the one at the porch.

Two men in black suits look at him shocked. Izuku eyes them frightened as he scans rapidly every part of their bodies and his eyes land at the gun holsters on their left hips.

One of them notices, and the man goes rigid.

"Hey, kid, it's oka—"

He doesn't get to finish his sentence when Izuku screams.

Dents spread on the windows, and the near emptiness of the room makes a disturbing echo; the both of them freeze on the spot.

Izuku checks the time on the clock next to the bedroom; _he has a total of ten minutes to run away from there._

He grabs his notebooks and closes the laptop in one go. He runs inside the bedroom and shoves them into the backpack stuffed with his other eight notebooks, a change of clothes, a toothbrush and toothpaste, the laptop's charger, a phone charger, a lantern, and a map; he also puts inside the money pouch where his Aniki's savings are.

His flip phone rests safely on his right pocket.

He puts his gray hoodie, then he slings the backpack to his left shoulder and makes his way to the kitchen to grab a face mask from a drawer. He checks the time again and makes his way to the front door while avoiding the two men.

He ties his shoes as fast as he can, and calmly leaves the apartment.

 _He has only six minutes before the men start moving again._

He scans the corridor, and as smoothly as he can, he makes his way to the stairs. On the third floor, there's another man with a black suit and Izuku's heart races. He needs to make his leave a little less suspicious.

He grabs his phone and starts to talk to a dead line.

"Hey, Micchan, I'm on my way, I'm stopping at a Konbini after a few blocks, do you want me to bring you something?"

The man eyes him suspiciously as he passes next to him, Izuku keeps going down.

"Ah, I see..." he makes it to the second floor and keeps going until he's on the main floor that takes to the street, "Okay, I'll be there in ten, tell Jucchan to be a little more patient."

He's finally making his way to the corner that takes to the next block when he checks the time, he closes his phone, shoves it into his pocket, and calmly keeps walking.

He puts on the white face mask, and there's only one minute left.

Across the street he hears the door of a car open, "Where do you think you're going, _Midoriya Izuku_."

He hears something resembling a compressed shot go off. A spot on his right shoulder stings as it gets pierced with what probably is a dart.

When he turns back, he gets a glimpse of a white-haired man in a gray suit, pointing a tranquilizing gun at him.

His heart is beating a mile per hour, his vision blurs.

 **He doesn't feel anything when he makes contact with the ground.**

* * *

 **[A/N]** Again, I apologize if this ending didn't make it for you, but it was how I had it planned from the beginning to keep going with what I already have established in my master list.

Thank you all for your alerts, favorites, and reviews, even if it was a lapse of a horrid long time without updating, those meant a lot to me and helped me through in my time in university.

This is not over yet, for now, this will remain on hiatus, but when I'm back on this verse, I will give it my all and pour all the love into this story.

Thank you very much for understanding and sticking with this story, it really means a lot.


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